This invention relates to a gas/liquid/solids separator, and more particularly a separator designed to separate oil, carbon and gases in the exhaust fumes of a diesel engine. In a two cycle, ported, air-intake diesel engine, an airbox is needed to convey air to each cylinder for combustion and scavenging of each cylinder. Oil, carbon, and sometimes water, accumulate in each airbox and must be drained out to ensure trouble free operation of the engine. Pressurized air is introduced into the airbox from the blower or the turbocharger, and each airbox normally has a drain. This results in an oily waste being pushed out of the airbox through the drains, which most engine manufacturers suggest be kept fully open. Waste from these drains has in the past been ineffectively caught in buckets or cans, or has been let to flow onto the decks or into the bilges of boats, onto railroad track beds from trains, onto the highway from trucks, or onto whatever surrounding area is available for other engine applications, e.g., drill rigs, backup generator units, etc. Such pollution of the environment is totally unacceptable today, and this invention eliminates that pollution problem.
This invention provides an effective, inexpensive method and apparatus for collecting the oily engine waste and separating it into its components for proper disposal. Additionally, it allows engine operator to monitor the type and amount of materials being wasted by the engine.
It is an object of this invention to provide an efficient collection and use of the components of the exhaust fumes of an internal combustion engine. It is another object of this invention to provide an apparatus to collect oil and carbon exiting from a diesel engine and provide for an appropriate means of disposal for such components. Still other objects will become apparent from the more detailed description of the invention which follows.